We had our 3rd annual meatzza-off and it was the best one yet! The recipes were creative and even more delicious than last year. Would you believe I completely forgot to take pictures of the meatzzas?? This was kind of a 2-part problem. The first problem was that the meatzzas came out of the oven and were devoured within 4 minutes. The second problem was that I was one of the people devouring them as fast as possible. All eating and chatting means there are no pictures!

Our voting system got skewed slightly....I think Phoebe helped us out by adding about 2 dozen random votes. What I'd like to do is to have everyone who was there cast votes in the comments on the blog. I'm going to try and remember everyone's meatzzas....if I forgot yours let me know right away!

Please vote for the winner!

Brian & Catherine's Veal/Basil
Garth's pulled pork
Bill's Buffalo Chicken
Sammie's Pepperoni
Michelle's Taco
Mark's Bacon Explosion mini meatzzas
Steph's pulled chicken
Kristin's Almond Meal Crust
(I forget whose) Thick Meat crust with orange peppers & Pepperoni

Thank you to everyone who came and shared the beautiful day with us. Whether you brought meatzza, dessert, wine or just yourself, it was great to spend some time with you!

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Yesterday was another fun Team Saturday WOD. We worked in teams of 4 to complete:

John was visiting us from Indiana. He's Mark's brother-in-law and he does CrossFit out of his own garage. It was pretty cool to hear his feedback on what he thought of the Fort! Not surprisingly, he thought everyone was great!

John brought his luck from Indiana and helped power his team to sweet, sweet victory!

Yesterday was also the Barbells for Boobs fundraiser down at CrossFit Chicago. CrossFit Fire had a strong showing there with a ton of competitors. Nicole took first place with her amazing time of 2:03! We also had Ryan the Lion set a PR by over 1:30! I'm proud of you guys for your amazing support of the community! Fire has members at almost every CrossFit event in our area.

I have to brag just a little....Katelyn had her first swim meet yesterday which is why we couldn't make it to Chicago. She took  home a 2nd place and a 3rd place ribbon!

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For time:
100 wall ball shots (20/14lb)
3:00 rest
100 box jumps (24/20")

Wasn't that a great way to end your week? The October ramp-up finished up with this class as their first "real" class, and I'm pretty sure they loved it.

Bill reported that there was some funny "Jamie" incidences in class. Jamie F stopped when she got to 80 wall ball shots and asked, "that's 80, should I keep going?" Bill didn't say anything, but just turned his back and walked away without writing Jamie's time on the board. I guess she got her answer, AND she finished the whole thing!

Our other funny "Jamie" incident was with Mrs. Michelau. She was bargaining with Bill to see if she could either use the 10lb ball and do all the reps, or the 14lb ball and scale down to 80. Bill just wrote "rx" on the board next to her name, and that was that. She did the RX reps AND used the big 14lb ball. Great job!!

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I think an easier name for these would just be: George's Cookies.

REVISED: 10/26/11

1/2 c butter, melted
3/4c agave nectar
1/2 tsp Dextrose
4 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
1-1/2 c unsweetened finely shredded coconut
3/4 c dark chocolate chips
3/4 c natural peanut butter
1 c sifted coconut flour

Mix together butter, agave, eggs, vanilla and salt until well blended. Stir in coconut, chocolate chips, peanut butter and coconut flour. Using a medium size scoop or large tablespoon, spoon dough onto greased cookie sheets about an inch apart. (will not spread like normal cookies) Bake at 375 for 14-15 minutes. Cool slightly before removing from cookie sheets. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

The cookies I baked on my "stone" turned out much better than the ones on my cookie sheets. The bottoms stayed nice and consistent on the stone, but got very dark on metal cookie sheets. Just FYI. I only have 1 stone, and I'm too impatient to wait.

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If you were looking for the hot pink jump rope, then I have some bad news. The hot pink rope is...dead. Hopefully Bender can breathe some new life into it, but it had to be retired temporarily. There was so much electrical tape on that thing, it hardly could spin anymore. Not to mention that it had sharp points sticking out like barbed wire. HOWEVER - there are all kinds of new speed ropes in its place, so hopefully you found one you liked!

5 rounds for time:
5 handstand push-ups
10 Hang Power Cleans (60/40kg)
50 Double Unders

I was at the busy 9AM class and saw a lot of impressive performances! Jamie Fuhlmeister is hopping over her barbell as if she never got hurt! For those of you who have suffered a debilitating injury, you know that recovery is a long physical and mental road. I have to give mad props for Jamie on her recovery and her spirit! So what if she's the owner of CrossFitCheaters.com....I still love her!

Steve also did great on this WOD. We were discussing the best and least scary strategy for using a 24" box as your HSPU substitute. Steve compared it to having to dive into the swimming pool! The best way to get going is to put your hands on the ground, and THEN put your knees on the box. Knees on the box first is definitely scary on the way down!

Sniff...sniff....as if losing our hot pink rope wasn't sad enough, we had to lose our Asian Sensation, Seara, for the winter. She and her beautiful family "winter" down in Florida, but she promises to be back in the spring. Hopefully when she comes back, we'll convince Paul to give this CrossFit thing a shot! We'll miss you! Stay in touch!

REMINDERS - Tomorrow is Barbells for Boobs down at CrossFit Chicago. We will also be open for our regular classes at the Fort in case you can't make it down to the city. Also - Sunday is the annual Meatzza off! Be there, or forever hear the tales of all the delicious food you missed!

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Next Saturday, October 29th, we will be closing our doors at the Fort and heading out to CrossFit Carbon to support our buddy, Jeremy. Carbon is hosting a fundraiser and breakfast to raise money to offset Jeremy's medical expenses. Let's get as many people out there to show their support as possible! Come to WOD, and bring a paleo breakfast dish to pass.

The WOD has been announced ahead of time:

23:00 AMRAP in teams of 2
4 squat cleans (85/60kg)
14KB swings  (32/20kg)
22 pull-ups
58 box jumps (24/20")

Now don't panic. This IS a hard WOD, but there will be scaling options available. Plus, this will be completed in teams of 2. If you are attending the event, and need someone on your team, let's start some conversation around that in the comments. Co-Ed teams are allowed. Bill and I plan on going early, at 9AM.

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I'm not gonna lie....I'm still convinced nobody ever reads the blog. Well, apparently a LOT of people do, because I was in BIG TROUBLE for skipping Monday's WOD on the blog. Just so I'm not in trouble anymore, here's what we did Monday:

MEAT GOAT. Something new has appeared at the Fort. It's the Meat Goat's honor system! They have stocked our freezer full of delicious grass fed/finished ground beef, sausages, and top sirloins. If you don't have time to run to the store, grab something from our freezer for dinner! Prices are listed on the sheet, and you just leave your cash/check in the drop box.

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